Noise
by Hithui
Summary: Sep-Oct 2016 FF Challenge — Story Title Prompts (csiforeveronline dot wikifoundry dot com). Grissom enjoys a quiet moment in the midst of a busy case.


**NOISE**

 _Sep-Oct 2016 FF Challenge — Story Title Prompts_

 _(csiforeveronline dot wikifoundry dot com)_

 _Each of the listed words will be twofold for the story: It will be the actual title & it will be what the story is about. List: Fire, Touch, Lies, Noise, Anger, Worry, Sorrow, Smiles, Wicked, Normal, Hero, Fall, Endless, Righteous, Hope, Friction_

 _Rules: ~ One-Shot - any length but only 1 post per story_

 _~ Any of the CSI characters from the original series, either living or dead_

 _~ At least 2 of our beloved CSI characters must appear in the story_

 _~ Any Genre - AU, Fantasy, Crime, Comedy, Drama, Western, Historical, etc._

 _~ No cross-over with any other CSI series or show_

 _Setting: Early Season 4, AU in that Grissom and Sara are a couple, though it is still new :)_

 _Disclaimer: None of the characters or the concept of CSI are mine, I'm just playing with them a little._

* * *

 _Halloween, October 31, 2003_

The nightshift was finally back at the LVPD Crime Lab, returned from an incredibly chaotic crime scene at the MGM Grand. A group of bikers celebrating a member's recent divorce and release from jail had objected to a James Dean - Rebel Without a Cause themed bachelor party . . . and other Halloween revelers had been drawn into the fracas. The casino's security squad had been dealing with the situation, corralling the brawlers for LVPD pick up, until gunshots were fired. That brought the Graveyard CSI team into the fray for more than half the night. But now, Gil Grissom stood in the doorway of his office, his eyes closed, catching his breath and listening to the quiet bustle of the lab.

By the muffled sounds of Marilyn Manson leaking from behind glass doors, he knew Greg Sanders was hard at work in his lab, sorting through the biologic samples the team had brought in. A small smile curled Grissom's lips as he thought of the young man–his crazy music, his crazier hair, and ambition to move beyond his mastery of DNA and become a CSI. The nightshift supervisor would have scoffed if anyone had ever suggested he would miss Greg's zaniness in the lab, but as much as he knew Sanders would make an excellent investigator, he would miss him and his presence in these halls.

Ringing laughter caught his attention from the break room, turning his thoughts to the brotherly camaraderie of Nick Stokes and Warrick Brown. Grissom sighed, wondering what competition was brewing between the two men tonight – whether it had to do with one of their cases, or with matters in their private lives, these two would find a way to bet on it. He shook his head, knowing that no matter what, they would always give their best – regardless of the bet.

A shout of "Firing two!" followed by two sharp crack came from Bobby Dawson's domain, letting Grissom know that the ballistic's tech was starting the long process of identifying the numerous fire arms the team had collected tonight. He then heard Nick's and Warrick's distinctive footsteps heading down the hallway and he knew that they were on their way to assist their "gun guy" in cataloging all the guns to find the guilty weapons. A soft prayer went up that the shooting victims would survive their wounds, and the case would not become a homicide tonight.

The ringing sounds of slot machines poured briefly from another lab before being muted, pulling Grissom's attention in that direction. A quick "Sorry!" rang out afterward, followed by male laughter, which told him that his right hand, Catherine Willows, was working with the resident AV tech, Archie Johnson. He didn't envy the pair, trying to wade through the copious amount of security video, trying to isolate stills of which suspects were where when the guns were fired.

Not so quiet grumbles trickled out of the Trace lab, home of the taciturn Trace tech, David Hodges. Grissom couldn't quite stifle a chuckle as he remembered the man's shocked face at the cartloads of evidence his team had delivered to be analyzed.

"Are you laughing at poor Hodges, Griss?" a throaty contralto murmured in his ear, causing him to jump and open his eyes.

He could hear the smile in her voice at being able to sneak up and startle him. "Maybe?" he murmured back, his blue eyes sparkling as he gazed at the young woman who had stolen his heart. Quirking an eyebrow at her, he added, "Am I forgiven since I called for all the interns to join him as soon as possible to handle the load?"

A smile lit up Sara Sidle's face and, after a quick glance around, she brushed a kiss against his bearded cheek, delighting at the soft pink that suffused her man's face at the gesture. But rather than comment on it, she tilted her head to study him for a long moment. "So whatcha doing? Enjoying the quiet after the cacophony of the scene?"

Grissom smiled softly at her thinly veiled concern. After she had found out about his hearing issues and surgery, Sara had become very protective and tried to subtly check on him, to make sure he was not only fully recovered, but no longer having any aural issues. Placing his hand at the small of her back, he led her into the quiet confines of his office to his desk, where he had begun to compile the team's notes on the case. "Nope," he answered succinctly as he pulled a chair around for her to sit in, knowing it would draw a reaction from her.

As expected, her brow furrowed as she turned her gaze upon him. "Griss?" The amount of emotion Sara could pack into a query, even a one word query, always amazed him. As he simply grinned in response, her gaze sharpened as she repeated his name. "Griss?"

A soft chuckle erupted as he sat beside her. "Relax, Sara. Everything's fine." Her mein relaxed some, but he could tell she needed more before she would be truly satisfied. "I was enjoying listening to the _**noise**_."

Understanding dawned in her beautiful brown eyes, and she nodded once, before the both of them turned their attention to the case at hand.


End file.
